BREITBART — The threat of a terrorist group like the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL) using nuclear material to carry out a “dirty bomb” attack against the West is the highest since the Cold War came to an end, warns a leading international think tank on proliferation.

[ISIS] has already carried out numerous chemical weapons attacks in Syria; we know it wants to go further by carrying out a nuclear attack in the heart of Europe. This, combined with poor levels of security at a host of nuclear research centers in the former Soviet Union mean the threat of a possible ‘dirty-bomb’ attack on a Western capital is high.

[ISIS] has already carried out numerous chemical weapons attacks in Syria; we know it wants to go further by carrying out a nuclear attack in the heart of Europe. This, combined with poor levels of security at a host of nuclear research centers in the former Soviet Union mean the threat of a possible “dirty-bomb” attack on a Western capital is high.

The warning from the organization is consistent with a June 2015 assessment by Australia’s Foreign Minister Julie Bishop. Citing Australia’s departments of Defense and Foreign Affairs, as well as NATO, she told The Australian that ISIS had gained access to radioactive material from hospital and research centers in territory it captured in Iraq and Syria, raising the likelihood that the jihadist group could develop a large “dirty” bomb.

Moreover, ISIS, in the ninth edition of its propaganda magazine Dabiq, published last year, indicated that it could purchase a nuclear weapon in Pakistan, take it to Nigeria, and then smuggle it into the United States through Mexico by using existing trafficking networks in Latin America.

The most recent warning, issued by the international think-tank, comes amid concerns that ISIS will attempt to carry out attacks during the upcoming Euro 2016 soccer championship in France, reports The Independent.